Self-diagnosing processes using qr-code

ABSTRACT

Systems, methods and computer program products for diagnosing consistency of a software cluster are provided herein. The system includes a deployment manager configured to function as a master node of the software cluster, a plurality of nodes connected to the deployment manager, and an electronic device or devices registered with the deployment manager. The deployment manager ban be configured to generate a master quick response (QR) code and each of the plurality of nodes can be configured to generate a node QR code. The electronic device(s) may be associated with a system administrator and may also be installed with application software. Embodiments may allow the system administrator to encode, manage and analyze diagnostic information of the nodes in the software cluster utilizing the master QR code and the node QR code in an efficient manner.

BACKGROUND

The field of the invention regards systems and methods for establishingor maintaining network clusters. More specifically, the consistency oradaptability of network software clusters is measured, tracked ormaintained using machine parsable codes, such as quick response (QR)codes or other machine readable codes.

Application clustering or software clustering links multiple computerservers into a cluster—a group of servers that act like a single system.Each of the servers in a cluster may maintain the same information andmay collectively perform administrative tasks such as load balancing,determination of node failures, and assignment failover duty.Application clusters are readily considered scalable because servers maybe added or removed from the cluster as needs arise or as technologywarrants.

When an application cluster is created, supplemented or changed,versions of various software applications and operating systems may needto be confirmed as being compatible or as being within a range ofsuitable compatibility in order for the cluster to function. Such acompatibility analysis may be automated by software for testingapplication cluster configurations. A compatibility analysis may also beperformed by system administrators, who may visually compare thesoftware configurations of all the nodes of the cluster to confirm thatall nodes are compatible with each other. The automated and the manualcomparisons may each be difficult when comparing large software clustershaving multiple software dependencies. For example, checkingcompatibility of application software and operating systems can betedious and prone to erroneous results.

Automated compatibility testing systems can include storingconfiguration details in image headers that may be used to check versioncompatibility. These compatibility testing systems may utilize versioncode-based image headers to store configuration details. The headers maythen be compared during installation to verify version compatibility.Using these headers may serve to limit the amount of information to bestored and compared.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Systems, methods, devices, and articles of manufacture are providedherein. These embodiments may be used for managing or monitoring orestablishing application clusters using computer readable QR codes.These quick response codes may be embedded with version or compatibilityinformation of one or more components or applications of a cluster. TheQR codes may be read and compared by machines or users or both in orderto analyze the compatibility of nodes in the cluster. This compatibilitymay be analyzed at set up, during operation, and when changes in thecluster occur.

In embodiments a system may be provided wherein the system may include asoftware cluster having a deployment manager configured to function as amaster node, a plurality of nodes, and one or more other electronicdevices registered with the deployment manager. The deployment managermay be configured to generate a master quick response (QR) code and eachof the plurality of nodes may be configured to generate a node QR code.In embodiments, the electronic device may be associated with a systemadministrator and may be installed with application software on numerousportable electronic devices. Through the use of the QR codes, such asthe comparison between or observation of master QR codes and node QRcodes, the system may allow a system administrator to encode, manage,and analyze diagnostic information of the nodes in the software clusterutilizing. In embodiments this diagnostic information or analysis mayinclude version control and compatibility control.

In embodiments methods may include processes for diagnosing consistencyor compatibility of software clusters. These processes may includegathering diagnostic information of software clusters by a systemadministrator, initiating a function, such as a genVersionQRCodefunction implemented on the deployment manager by the systemadministrator to generate a master QR code, invoking a functionimplemented on the plurality of nodes to generate specialized node QRcodes, and comparing the QR codes in an automated fashion, manualfashion or both to determine version inconsistency or versioncompatibility of a cluster environment. These comparisons may be betweena deployment manager and a plurality of nodes or other clusterapplications or systems. In embodiments, version inconsistency may beencoded in a new QR code and this new QR code may be transmitted to anelectronic device of the system administrator via a communication means,scanning and automatically decoding the new QR code into a readable formby the electronic device. These transmitted QR codes may be read by thesystem administrator to understand the version inconsistency, diagnosecluster issues, and resolve any version inconsistency identifiedautomatically or by a system administrator or other user.

Numerous configurations and variants may be employed in embodiments andmay include comparing the current component configurations or QR codeswith the last stored component configurations, with or without QR codes,to determine any changes in configuration or compatibility. Inembodiments, a system administrator or other designee may be notified ofa configuration change or notified incompatibility and may use thesenotifications or information to consider or evaluate consistencies orcompatibilities. The notifications may use QR codes from a deploymentmanager and QR codes from a node of the cluster to transmit or holdversion or compatibility information. In embodiments, the QR codes maybe compatible with and may be read by hand-held electronic devices suchas mobile phones or tablet devices. The use of these portable devicesmay provide additional flexibility and robustness for an administratoror user.

Still further, processes may be used in embodiments to encode theconfiguration parameters in a QR code, transmit the QR code to a processcontrol system, and decode the QR code to configure the system. In thismethod or in others, the QR code may be also automatically decoded intoa human readable form. This human readable form can include colorchanges, the introduction of human readable text or images into the QRcode and through other human readable forms as well. In so doing, asystem administrator or other person may be notified of configurationchanges and may even be informed based on the configuration of the QRcode itself. Further, the amount and the type of information that can bestored or transmitted using the QR codes may be modified and enhanced inembodiments depending on factors such as system hardware.

Thus, embodiments may serve to manage configuration compatibility in astreamlined or tailored manner that may include the use of machineparsable code, preferably a QR code, to save diagnostic information. Inso doing, embodiments may compare QR codes of various nodes to detectversion changes, may be able to store large amounts of diagnosticinformation in the QR code, and may provide a QR code to other devicesby scanning the code or using other transmission methodologies. Asmentioned above, embodiments may be able to notify a systemadministrator or user of version changes by employing color coded QRcodes and may be able to transmit version changes to the systemadministrator through various communication means included wired andwireless means. Embodiments may also provide real-timecluster-management to the system administrator and provide meaningfulamounts of diagnostic information in the QR code in addition to versionand compatibility information.

These and other embodiments and combinations are plausible and may bepracticed drawings from the teachings and disclosure provided herein,and the many embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a system for diagnosingconsistency of a software cluster as may also be employed inembodiments.

FIG. 2 illustrates a high-level operational flow chart of the system fordiagnosing consistency of the software cluster as may also be employedin embodiments.

FIG. 3 illustrates a detailed flow chart reflecting a method fordiagnosing consistency of the software cluster as may also be employedin embodiments.

FIG. 4 illustrates a schematic of a deployment manager and nodes as mayalso be employed in embodiments.

FIG. 5 illustrates a flow diagram showing how QR coding processes andcomparisons may be carried out autonomically and manually in accord withembodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments can provide systems, methods, and articles of manufacturefor diagnosing consistency or compatibility of a software cluster. Suchembodiments may serve to diagnose consistency of a software cluster andprovide tools to determine version inconsistency. In embodiments,version inconsistency may be determined autonomically as well as by asystem administrator or user. In embodiments, the use of QR codes mayenable improved analysis by enabling users access to version informationor other compatibility information through the use of hand-held or otherportable QR code scanning devices.

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of the system 10 for diagnosingconsistency of the software cluster 12 utilizing a machine parsable codein accordance with embodiments of the present invention. The system 10is shown to comprise a deployment manager 14 configured to function as amaster node of the software cluster 12, a plurality of nodes 16connected to the deployment manager 14, and an electronic device 18registered with the deployment manager 14. The deployment manager 14 maybe configured to generate a master quick response (QR) code 20 and eachof the plurality of nodes 16 may be configured to generate a node QRcode 22. The electronic device 18 may be associated with a systemadministrator and may be installed with application software. The system10 and other embodiments may allow the system administrator to easilyencode, manage and analyze diagnostic information of the nodes in thesoftware cluster 12 utilizing the master QR code 20 and the node QR code22. The diagnostic information includes state information and versioninformation of the nodes in the software cluster 12.

While creating a software cluster, the system administrator may gatherall the diagnostic information of all the nodes of the software cluster12. The diagnostic information may include state information and versioninformation of the deployment manager and the other nodes. For example,a system administrator may initiate a genVersionQRCode functionimplemented in the deployment manager to generate the master QR code 20.The genVersionQRCode function may gather diagnostic information of thedeployment manager 14, encode the diagnostic information, and generate amaster QR code 20. The master QR code 20 generated may be stored in amaster pre-defined location on the deployment manager 14. The masterpre-defined location may be an option folder “/opt/mastVerQRCode.” Inembodiments, the deployment manager 14 may be considered to be a masternode of the software cluster 12.

In embodiments initiating the genVersionQRCode function may in turninvoke a nodeVerQRCode function implemented on each of the plurality ofnodes 16. The nodeVerQRCode function may gather the diagnosticinformation of each of the plurality of nodes 16, encode the diagnosticinformation and generate the node QR code 22 on each of the plurality ofnodes 16. The diagnostic information may include version information,instance information, and other compatibility indicia, as well as otherspecifics applicable to cluster compatibility.

In embodiments, the node QR code 22 generated may be stored in a nodepre-defined location on each of the plurality of nodes. The nodepre-defined location may be another option folder “/opt/nodeVerQRCode.”The master pre-defined location and the node pre-defined location storesthe master QR code 20 and the node QR code 22 respectively and may beaccessible by all the nodes in the software cluster 12.

The system 10 may use a compareQRCode function to compare the master QRcode and the node QR code to determine version inconsistency between thedeployment manager 14 and the plurality of the nodes 16. ThecompareQRCode function may be implemented in the deployment manager 14and the compareQRCode function may also be implemented in any other nodeof the software cluster 12. The compareQRCode function programmaticallycompares the master QR code 20 and the node QR code 22 to determineversion inconsistency.

Also, in embodiments, the system 10 may encode the version inconsistencyin a new QR code, which may be transmitted to the electronic device 18via a communication device or suitable means. The new QR code may alsobe displayed on the system 10 and the version inconsistency may bestored in a location “/opt/logVerQRCode” along with a date andtimestamp. The communication means may be selected from a groupconsisting of: Bluetooth, SMS and e-mail. The electronic device 18 maybe selected from a group consisting of: mobile phones, smart phones,laptops or personal computers.

The new QR code may allow the system administrator to understand theversion inconsistency, analyze the diagnostic information of thesoftware cluster 12 and access an administration console to resolve theversion inconsistency. The system administrator can scan or read (orboth), the new QR code using the application software implemented in theelectronic device 18.

The application software may, thus, be made compatible with the system10 so that the electronic device 18 can easily scan the new QR code andautomatically decode the new QR code into a human readable form or amore human readable form if some human readable information is alreadyresident. In other words, by reading the new QR code, the systemadministrator may be informed of the version inconsistency in the system10. The system administrator may also have detailed information aboutvarious software levels of the cluster from the QR code. The new QR codemay also provide a link to access the administration console, which theadministrator can use to resolve the issues. Furthermore, the new QRcode may also include an error code, which can be accessed by the systemadministrator to compare against a knowledge database so as to find aquick resolution. In addition, the new QR code may also include anotification which allows the administrator to open a problem report.

The system 10 or other embodiments may, thus, allow the systemadministrator to easily encode, manage and diagnose configurationinformation in the software cluster 12. The master QR code 20 and thenode QR code 22 are machine parsable codes, which allow computers toeasily understand and compare diagnostic information.

FIG. 2 illustrates a high-level operational flow chart of the system 10for diagnosing consistency of the software cluster 12 in accordance withembodiments. This flow chart depicts a computer program product fordiagnosing consistency of the software cluster 12. The processes orsteps identified therein may be carried out in the disclosed order or inother orders, with more or fewer steps, with modifications to thosesteps, and all while remaining within the scope of the disclosure andthe accompanying invention.

As indicated at block 24, computer readable instructions may be executedto gather diagnostic information of the software cluster to generate amaster QR code on the deployment manager. In a next step, computerreadable instructions may be executed to generate a node QR code on eachof the plurality of nodes as shown in block 26. Computer readableinstructions may also be executed to compare the master QR code and thenode QR code to determine version inconsistency between the deploymentmanager and each of the plurality of nodes as indicated at block 28.Afterwards, the version inconsistency may be notified to the systemadministrator by means of a new QR code as shown in block 30.

FIG. 3 illustrates a detailed flow chart reflecting a method fordiagnosing consistency of the software cluster in accordance withembodiments of the invention. Initiating at block 32, diagnosticinformation of the software cluster may be gathered by a systemadministrator. As shown in block 34, a genVersionQRCode functionimplemented on the deployment manager may be initiated by the systemadministrator to generate a master QR code. A nodeVerQRCode functionimplemented on the plurality of nodes may then be invoked by thegenVersionQRCode function as indicated at block 36 and a node QR codemay be generated on each of the plurality of nodes by the nodeVerQRCodefunction as shown in block 38. In next step 40, the master QR code andthe node QR code may be compared by a compareQRCode function todetermine version inconsistency between the deployment manager and theplurality of nodes. The version inconsistency may be encoded in a new QRcode as indicated at block 42. The new QR code may be transmitted to anelectronic device of the system administrator via a communication meansas shown in block 44. Then, the new QR code may be scanned andautomatically decoded into a readable form by the electronic device asindicated at block 46. As shown in block 48, the new QR code may be readby the system administrator to understand the version inconsistency.Using this information, the version inconsistency may be diagnosed bythe system administrator as indicated at block 50.

The new QR code may also be provided with a color attribute so that thesystem administrator can easily identify the issues. For instance, asystem without version inconsistency may have a green QR code. The newQR code encoded with error information would have a different colorattribute. This may allow the system administrator to easily spot thedifferent colored QR codes, which may enable him to quickly identify andresolve errors.

The QR code may store a large amount of information that can be readilyread by machines. The information encoded in the QR code may also beparsable into plain English-like language, which may be easily read bythe machines and humans. By embedding the configuration information inthe QR codes, the system 10 can provide a means to compact diagnosticinformation and can allow the system administrator to retrieveinformation quickly.

FIG. 4 shows a schematic of deployment managers and nodes as may beemployed in embodiments. Visible in FIG. 4 are a deployment manager 401,an administrator 406, a user 405, nodes 402 and 403 and a clusterwide-area-network 407. The deployment manager 401, which may function asa master node, is shown with a bus 420, a hard drive 419, a floppyCD-ROM 418, a network adapter 417, an I/O adapter 416, a serial portinterface 415, additional interfaces 414, system memory 413, and aprocessing unit 412. Each of these components within the deploymentmanager 401 communicate back-and-forth and receive power from the bus420.

Also shown in FIG. 4 is code 411 that may be resident on the hard drive419 and in system memory 413. This code 411 may be parsed and executedby the processing unit 412. As can be seen the code 411 may include anoperating system, applications, modules, plug-ins, and data. Thecomponents of the deployment manager 420 and its code 411 may also befound in the nodes 402 and 403 as well as in the administrator device406 and in the user 405 device. Each of these components may communicateback and forth with one another through the cluster WAN 407.

As with the above, the deployment manager 401 may serve to allow asystem administrator to understand the version inconsistency, analyzethe diagnostic information of the software cluster, and access anadministration console to resolve the version inconsistency orincompatibility. The system administrator can scan/read the new QR codeusing the application software implemented in the deployment manager 401or the device 406.

The application software may be made compatible because the electronicdevice 406 can easily scan the new QR code and automatically decode thenew QR code into a human readable form. In other words, by reading thenew QR code, the system administrator may be informed of the versioninconsistency in the cluster system being considered and may take actionto resolve the inconsistency so that the cluster can perform as targetedQOS levels. The system administrator may also have detailed informationabout various software levels of the cluster from the QR code.

In embodiments, the new QR code may also provide a link to access theadministration console, which the administrator can use to resolve theissues. Furthermore, the new QR code may also include an error code,which can be accessed by the system administrator over the WAN othernetwork, to compare against a knowledge database so as to find a quickresolution. In addition, the new QR code may also include a notificationthat allows the administrator to open a problem report.

FIG. 5 shows a flow diagram employing processes as may be carried out inembodiments. As shown in FIG. 5 processes may be carried outautomatically by the system, as shown in area 502 and with humanintervention, as shown in area 501. At the outset of the clusterconfiguration a user, administrator, or other person may gather versionlevels information for each of the components and software applicationsto be employed in the cluster. This gathering is shown at 511. Uponverifying the version or compatibility information for the clustercomponents and applications, a user may build the cluster as shown at512. This compiled and version check information may be used as inputsto a QR code generation function that generates a master QR code for thecluster. This master QR to generation is shown by 513.

Area 502, which shows autonomic functions of embodiments, shows that aQR Daemon or subsystem may receive the master QR code 513 and work inconjunction with the comparator 515 to determine if a cluster change hasoccurred. If the comparator 515 determines that a cluster component orsoftware has changed the QR Daemon 514 may serve to regenerate Master QRcode as shown at 516. Likewise a comparator 518 may also identifychanges in nodes of the cluster, and if appropriate, regenerate QR codeson those particular nodes, as shown at 517. These regenerated Master QRcodes and QR codes may be compared as shown at 519, and if changes aredetected, the compatibility between the components or software may beevaluated and confirmed. When no pertinent changes are detected by thecomparator 522 the Master QR code, and the QR code on the nodes may allbe provided back to the subsystem 514. Likewise, the comparator 518,upon not sensing any change in configurations, may send an existingconfiguration schematic version information back to the QR Daemon 514.

The process flow shown in FIG. 5 may include additional as well as fewercomponents or steps. Some additional steps may include furtherintervention by a user or administrator, including visual inspection ofQR codes, and system entry of direct version data. Other changes, forexample less intervention by the administrator, may be done as well.

While the present invention has been described in terms of a systemwhich notifies version inconsistency of a software cluster in the formof QR code to a system administrator, this is not a necessary conditionof the invention. Instead, the QR code may be automatically regeneratedby the system 10 when there is a change in the software cluster, withouthuman intervention. Further, while preferred embodiments may use anelectronic device for diagnosing the version inconsistency of thesystem, this does not have to be in all embodiments. For example, theadministrator may diagnose the inconsistency on the system itself.Additionally, while the present invention has been described in terms ofgenerating the master QR code by initiating the genVersionQRCodefunction, this is not a necessary condition of embodiments. The QR codemay be generated using application programming interfaces (API) such asGoogle Chart API or other means. Still further, in some implementations,the functions noted in the block may occur out of the order noted in thefigures. For instance, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, beexecuted substantially concurrently.

The corresponding structures, material, acts, and equivalents of allmeans or steps plus function elements in the claims below are intendedto include any structure, material or act for performing the function incombination with other claimed elements are specifically claimed. Thedescription of the present invention has been presented for purposes ofillustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive orlimited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications andvariations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill without departingfrom the scope and spirit of the invention. The embodiments were chosenand described in order to best explain the principles of the inventionand the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill inthe art to understand the invention for embodiments with variousmodifications as are suited for a particular contemplated use. Forexample, embodiments may be employed with existing cluster managementtechniques that are designed for simple, low-cost management ofdistributed and clustered power systems in technical and commercialcomputing environments.

What is claimed is: 1.-14. (canceled)
 15. A method for diagnosingconsistency of a software cluster utilizing a machine parse-able code,the method comprising the steps of: gathering diagnostic information ofthe software cluster by a system administrator, the software clustercomprising a deployment manager and a plurality of nodes; initiating agenVersionQRCode function implemented on the deployment manager by thesystem administrator to generate a master QR code; invoking anodeVerQRCode function implemented on the plurality of nodes by thegenVersionQRCode function; generating a node QR code on each of theplurality of nodes by the nodeVerQRCode function; comparing the masterQR code and the node QR code by a compareQRCode function to determineversion inconsistency between the deployment manager and each of theplurality of nodes; encoding the version inconsistency in a new QR code;transmitting the new QR code to an electronic device of the systemadministrator via a communication means; scanning and automaticallydecoding the new QR code into a readable form by the electronic device;reading the new QR code by the system administrator to understand theversion inconsistency; and diagnosing and resolving the versioninconsistency by the system administrator.
 16. The method of claim 15wherein the step (b) further comprises: gathering diagnostic informationof the deployment manager, encoding the diagnostic information andgenerating the master QR code by the genVersionQRCode.
 17. The method ofclaim 15 wherein the step (d) further comprises: gathering diagnosticinformation of each of the plurality of nodes, encoding the diagnosticinformation and generating the node QR code for each of the plurality ofnodes by the nodeVerQRCode.
 18. The method of claim 15 wherein the step(j) further comprises: understanding the version inconsistency,retrieving the diagnostic information of the software cluster andaccessing an administration console to resolve the version inconsistencyby the system administrator.
 19. The method of claim 15 wherein thecommunication means may be selected from a group consisting of:Bluetooth, SMS and e-mail.
 20. (canceled)